What goes into winning a championship?
There’s the obvious: talent, effort, luck. However, there is a quality that is often over-looked.
Perseverance. As in life, difficulties are bound to be encountered.
All roads to glory will be long and arduous. In the end, the ones that reach
their desired destination are those who continue the journey regardless of all
the adversity faced. This team’s odyssey certainly fits that assertion.
The idea of a Local 600 All Star Hockey team followed in the path of the
existing Region 1A All Star basketball and softball leagues. We have many
hockey players within all of 600’s membership. We just needed to find 15 to
20 that were willing to sacrifice a couple of hours every Sunday throughout
the winter. We got a commitment from enough of our members to start
out and we joined an existing hockey league in Trenton.
Three years in now, the squad has earned its share of bruises, both physically
and mentally. With all that goes along with a grueling season, the chemistry
began to grow. Rivalries sprang forth and began to ratchet up the intensity.
The fact that we lost in the “Big Game” last year only served as motivation to
get over the hump in this year’s finale.
Our opponent was one that we had battled many times in these past three
years. It wasn’t a matchup of acquaintances, far from it. We certainly weren’t
going to be hanging out after the game, for a few cold pops. The action on
the ice was intense. 600 was trailing for the entire game. Throughout the
battle, our team was determined to stay within striking distance. With three
minutes remaining, we finally tied the score at 4. Ironically, the other team
was the one that blinked.
With under 10 seconds remaining, overtime was a given. As in most games
of all sports, there is a brief moment, with the clock nearing zero, that players
let up. And we decided to push for one last shot. By the time it was
recognized, they were caught loafing. And in order to stop our attack, they
had to take a penalty… or else. We started overtime on a power play.
The team made the call to start the extra period with our strongest skaters.
We won the opening faceoff and skated toward their goalie. Like a scene in
a Hollywood movie, players parted, the goalie froze, and the puck found the
inside of the net. The Championship was ours. All of our determination had
paid off. The time and effort, the sweat and tears, the pain and sacrifice,
all instantly faded into oblivion. It sure is a nice place to be. Surrounded by
teammates and friends, those smiles won’t fade for a long, long time.
Solidarity on ice. Can’t beat that!